Saturday, April 4, 2009

The Mandaeans

The Mandaeans

It is interesting to note that not all of those who contributed to the origins of Christianity believe in the concept of “Jesus” as he is portrayed by the organized religions of today. For instance, the Mandaeans are followers of John the Baptist. They are a people called “Mughtasilah”, which means, “Those Who Wash themselves”. They are considered to be “Children of the Books”, and as such, are to be considered “holders of the Word of God." And though they are hostile to Judaism, Christianity and Islam, (Mandaeans regard Christianity and rabbinical Judaism as false religions that, along with the negative influence of planets and stars, impede the soul's release from bondage. With the arrival of Islam in Iraq, in 636 CE, the Mandeans were considered as the third “people of the book”, and as the mysterious Sabians of the Koran. But the Mandeans still faced a difficult relationship with Islam, and Muhammad is in their writings called the demon “Bizbat”. The Mandaeans subscribe to the belief that Judas Thomas was Jesus' twin brother and that it was actually Judas Thomas who was crucified on the cross and that Jesus then lived out his life as his brother Thomas to avoid persecution for his attempted role as the alleged messiah. To support this belief, the early church father “Irenaeus” wrote around 150 CE that Jesus remained on earth as a teacher for twenty years after his crucifixion, and that John the Apostle served as a conduit for these teachings. The Mandaeans are an ancient form of Christian Gnosticism, which practices initiation, ecstasy and some rituals which have been said to resemble those of the Freemasons. They very frequently practice baptism in running water and a sort of “confirmation”, given to the dying. They repudiate idolatry and circumcision, while celibacy is absolutely forbidden. They practice a moral code of charity and goodwill." They hold to a planetary influence on the hours and have a seven day induction of priests, similar to the Sabians. Their year consists of twelve months of thirty days each, followed by five auspicious days of epact. At the New Year they keep vigil for the spirits of light to return from congratulating the Supreme Being for creation. They utter “Ask and find, speak and listen” like the Harranians, but then invoke a formal denial of the powers of the sun and moon contrary to the Sabians. Their calendar is solar while the Harranian one is luni-solar. Women may own property, divorce is not recognized, a man may have as many wives as he desires." The Mandaeans take their name from “Manda” which means secret knowledge." The Mandaean priests are called “Nasoreans”, as were the followers of Jesus. Within the Mandaean sect, a Nazarean is equated to an archbishop. During the first three centuries CE, there were certain Mandaean or Johannite sects, especially in the region of the Tigris-Euphrates basin, who honored John the Baptist, not Jesus, as their prophet. One of these sects still exists to this day in areas of Iraq. According to their thinking, John the Baptist was “the true prophet”, while Jesus was a rebel, a heretic, who led men astray and whom betrayed secret doctrines.” According to the Mandeans, John the Baptist was Hibil-Ziwa. "Hibil-Ziwa was a Savior who entered the world of darkness and destroyed the evil spirits so that the faithful could obtain liberation before the end of the world." The Mandaeans tell of the founding of Jerusalem by a powerful and evil female Goddess named Ru Ha. For Jews, Muslims and Syriac-speaking Christians, Ru Ha, signifies the Holy Spirit who is mentioned in both the Quran and the Bible. She controlled the Seven Planets and worked evil on the Earth through several chosen men. They are Abraham, Moses, David and his son Solomon. Her greatest evil however, was realized through the actions of one man. At her temple in Jerusalem, a young priestess was selected to bear a “special offspring”. The name of this priestess was “Miriam”. We call her Mary. She brought forth the “child of Ru Ha”, the “Imunel” (Immanuel) and he was in turn called, “Jesus”.
He was baptized by John and taught at length by him. In time he turned away from John's teachings and led the people astray, the Mandaeans claim. The Mandaeans say that Mary is a “Daughter of Moses” and that Moses dwelt on Mt. Sinai. One of the texts of the Mandeans tells a story about the flight of a group called “Nasoreans”, from areas that are today known as Jordan, to the Mesopotamian region, in the times of the Jewish wars following the destruction of Jerusalem in the year 70 CE. It is thought that they were driven out by Saul (Paul) himself. The story goes that Paul arrived as the first Christian missionary in Corinth and in Ephesus, only to discover to his amazement that there were already churches established there. Upon making inquiries he discovered that they were the Church of John the Baptist. Paul believed that the Ephesians and Corinthians would, therefore, be delighted to discover that he represented Jesus Christ, the one prophesied to come after John. However, contrary to his expectations, they had never heard of such a prophecy." The following reference is found in the Christian bible: "While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when [or after] you believed?” They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” So Paul asked, 'Then what baptism did you receive?' “John's baptism,” they replied. Paul said, “John's baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” On hearing this, they were baptized into [or in] the name of the Lord Jesus." - Acts 19:1-5

And so though there is an ongoing and determined effort to present the three main Abrahamic religions as being the learning curve for all other beliefs in the world, there is in fact many deep divisions within such beliefs which belie the description of “organized religions”…